1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to NVMs, and more specifically, to NVM cells including the making thereof.
2. Related Art
Non-volatile memories (NVMs) have become common as both stand alone integrated circuits as well as embedded with other circuitry on the same integrated circuit. A particularly effective NVM cells for use in situations where high endurance and high retention are particularly important are ones using thin film storage such as nanocrystals. Nitride may also be used in similar situations to where nanocrystals are used. One issue with such NVM cells has been where sharp corners are involved causing points of breakdown across the thin film storage layer. This breakdown can occur in locations other than where the thin film storage layer is storing charge. The breakdown can cause leakage current which can result in high standby current and even difficulty in reading, programming, and erasing the cells.
Accordingly there is a need to provide further improvement in reducing risks of breakdown in NVM cells using thin film storage.